Death and the Maiden
by L Moonshade
Summary: E/O Challenge, part of my From Angels to Demons universe.  Kate meets yet one more person she never expected to see.  A story in drabbles. Takes place between Aftermath and Reveille.
1. Late

A/N: Yeah, so I'm late; this didn't get written until this morning. I was inspired to try a drabble story by Twinchy's Friends in Need and a desperate need to break the writer's block I've been suffering from. Trying something different usually helps so here goes. This actually takes place in my From Angels to Demons universe. For those of you who aren't familiar with it, all you need to know is that Kate came from a different reality to a place where a couple of her fictions are real.

A/N2: This story hasn't been beta'd, so any mistakes are mine.

Summary: Kate meets yet one more person she didn't expect to see.

Prompt: Late

Word count: 100

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><p>Mike looked up as I stepped into Joe's bar. "Hey, Kate. Someone here for you.<p>

I frowned. "Who?"

"Never seen him. Reminds me of your old man, just colder."

"Well, I'm intrigued."

"Just be careful, huh?"

I grinned. "Always." With that, I headed back. It was dark and he sat back in the shadows so I couldn't see him, but as I neared I could smell chicken wings. I felt a pang of nostalgia—sometimes I missed being able to eat—but that was forgotten when I caught the scent of grave dirt and not-unpleasant decay.

"You're late," he said.


	2. Clip

Prompt: Clip

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><p>Seeing him I could understand why Mike was put in mind of Methos; there was a strong resemblance in the slim build and the shape of his face. He was elegant with his dark hair slicked back, an expensive dark suit, an ivory-tipped walking stick leaning next to him against the table.<p>

"Sit, Kate, we need to talk," he said, words clipped short, though he didn't sound angry.

I looked at his right hand for a ring and found it, a square white stone in a silver setting. And all I could think was no. Just no. This wasn't happening.


	3. Coast

WoW: Coast

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><p>"Oh, come on," I said, as normal using indignation to cover my shock. "How much crap is real, here?"<p>

Death looked up and his eyes pierced me to the quick, another similarity between him and my husband. "There are elements of four. Highlander, Good Omens, NCIS and Supernatural, if you want me to name them."

"And I was sent here by a Doctor Who monster-of-the-week. That's not reality, you know."

"No?" His voice was so bland, as if he were coasting above it all, as if nothing could touch him. It probably couldn't. "Then what is it?"

"Bad fan fiction."


	4. Dust

A corner of his mouth twitched. "I said sit. I'd offer to share but I rather think you wouldn't accept."

I sat. "No, but thank you for the non-offer. It's nice to meet you."

"You actually mean that. Most people are less than pleased to see me."

"I haven't been afraid since I died."

Another sharp look. "Don't prevaricate. You're not afraid of me and you never have been. But you are afraid."

Should've known better than to lie to Death. "I still have nightmares every year, blood and dust and pain." And more terrifying than anything I'd ever experienced.


	5. Grapple

WoW: grapple

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><p>"Yes, I know. That's why I am here despite Methos'… Reluctance to introduce us."<p>

I shook my head. "I'm going to shoot him. You think he'd have learned by now that I'll accept him no matter what he's done or who he knows."

"You still grapple with who and what you are, after only forty-two years of life. He has more than five thousand years to get past."

"True. I guess you know what I saw, then."

"I should, I'm the one who put it there. Cassandra was right, Kate, there is more at stake than you have ever dreamed."


	6. Bill and Flag

Double the words, double the drabble.

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><p>"Are you going to explain or make me guess?"<p>

"On your show, Castiel took the souls of Purgatory and got drunk with power, declaring himself the new god. A frightening scenario, but not the most frightening player."

I flagged down a waitress, badly needing a drink. "Methos."

He nodded. "The Immortal who wins the Prize will be powerful enough to do the same, should he wish. A Methos still connected to humanity, would likely reject such power. If he had, however, ceased to truly live? Well. He could make Castiel look like a child playing dress-up in his daddy's clothes."

I shuddered, pulling out a bill to pay for my drink. "So you showed me that to… What?"

He turned back to his food. "I wanted to make certain you knew the implications. Now that Heaven has begun to keep a closer eye on which angels are allowed to visit Earth, the number of new potential Immortals born will drop to zero, and the Gathering will begin. Oh, dear. Did I tell you something you didn't know?"

So Immortals _were_ nephilim. "I would've figured it out eventually. So, am I supposed to get in touch with the Winchesters, or something?"


	7. Bake

"If you want Heaven to find you, yes. But neither your arrival nor your knowledge has gone unnoticed. So far, Raphael's decided that you are no threat to Heaven. The moment you meet Sam and Dean, however, that half-baked idea changes. And you know what'll happen then."

I did. "They take me out and Methos declares war."

"And if he had to win the Prize to do so, he would. And now we're back to Methos as god, one who's lost his greatest reason for living and killed three of the people he loves most in order to gain revenge."


	8. Rock title

A/N: The challenge was to use a classic rock song title in the fic. It's here, if you can find it.

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><p>"Damn it all to hell," I said, defeated. "I can't do this. There's far too many ramifications…"<p>

"Yes, you can," he said sternly. Then, relenting slightly, "For what it's worth, your encounter with the Lonely Assassin was unforeseen and unavoidable, but you did not come to the place and time you did by accident. If I thought you incapable, you wouldn't have been brought here."

I had to struggle for air. "You?"

He studied me intently, deciding how much to tell me. "Yes and no. I am the… Matchmaker, but it was my old friend who actually made it happen."


	9. Faint

I was starting to feel faint from the booze, but I needed to finish this conversation. "Why would you interfere like that?"

"Because this is where you need to be, for Methos and for you. It's the only place where you would not just survive, but thrive and prosper. Tell me the truth, Kate. If you were given the option to change what happened, would you?"

Yes, one thing. "I'd change the fact that my family doesn't know. I wish they knew that I didn't just abandon them."

Death just nodded, as if that were no more than he'd expected.


	10. Bonfire

I silently considered everything. At least I knew why I was here, but there was a new problem. "So, if I run into the Winchesters, the world goes up like a cosmic bonfire," I finally said. "But we both know it'll happen."

"I didn't say you _couldn__'__t_ come in contact with Sam and Dean, I said you _shouldn__'__t_. Not, at least, until you can hide from Heaven."

"Great, I'll just ask an angel to come down and carve Enochian sigils into my ribs…"

He interrupted me lazily, as if all this bored him. "Now, that would be quite the trick."


	11. Trick or treat

I laughed. Trick _or_ treat? I knew something that would think this both. "No kidding. Thanks for the advice…" I trailed off unsure. "Do I call you Death, or something else?"

"You could just call me Dad." He gave a rare smile (an unpleasant expression) at my shock. "You are part of the family, after all."

"I guess it really shouldn't surprise me." Now that we were done, I decided to ask the question that'd been bugging me since we'd started. "So, I'm guessing you're the same Death from Good Omens?"

OF COURSE I AM. THERE IS NO OTHER DEATH.


	12. Grade

I winced; his voice in my head was loud. "Yeah, I asked for that. I'm getting a migraine trying to reconcile it all."

"Then don't. After all, none of it is exactly like your fictions." He glanced at his watch. "And now, I believe it is time for both of us to go." He fussily wiped hands and mouth clean and set the napkin down. "If you need anything, feel free to call me," he said firmly. "Like my son, I take care of my own." He gave me a stern look. "Just make sure it's within my pay grade."


	13. Space

Right, no pissing off the father-in-law. "Thank you for everything. There's nowhere I would've rather wound up."

"I am gratified to hear it. Mike will find more than enough to cover my bill when he closes."

"I won't let him panic. Should I tell Methos you said hello?"

A look of annoyance crossed his face. "I'll see him before I return to my duties, take him to task for underestimating you. Good day, Caitlin. And, tell your Ducky that his consideration is appreciated." I watched him head for the door, disappearing in the space between one step and the next.


End file.
